Dot Shopping List For Current Fiscal To Touch Rs 11,000cr

The department of telecommunications (DoT) will procure equipment worth Rs 11,000 crore in the current financial year, an increase of 83 per cent over the 1996-97 procurement, which was worth Rs 6,000 crore.

The equipment that will form the bulk of the procurement programme are: underground jelly filled cables, trunk automatic exchanges, local telephone exchanges, microwave systems, optical fibre cables and systems, multi-access radio relay systems and telephone instruments.

The increase in the procurement programme indicates that purchase of equipment by DoT, which had been at a low ebb following the disclosure of irregularities in placement of orders during the tenure of former communications minister Sukh Ram, is moving into top gear.

The department intends to provide connections to 2.9 million new subscribers during the year. However, the equipment procured will be sufficient to provide 3.5-3.6 million new connections. The surplus will be used to meet emergencies and maintain the reserve stock.